tour 9 of 13
Sudan Past and Present: From the Islamic Period to the Modern World
Beaded Neck Ornament
Pastoralist peoples of southern Sudan, such as
the Dinka, have little representational art. They concentrate
instead on adorning their own bodies and those of their beloved
cattle - with which they have a close spiritual relationship. They
do this through body painting and the wearing of beaded necklaces,
neck and shoulder ornaments and other jewellery made of ostrich
shell, ivory and metal. Corsets tightly encasing the torso are also
worn, mainly by men.
This
finery conforms to fashion, accentuating the natural form of the
body, and also reveals a great deal about the age, achievements and
social standing of the wearer. In common with other pastoralist
peoples of East Africa, Dinka men pass through an age-grade system.
Its various stages require certain codes of conduct to be observed
and certain kinds of adornment to be displayed which indicate the
individual's status in society. Different coloured beads
and slightly different styles of beadwork are worn by men to
indicate these
transitions.
This
particular neck ornament, with its central band of patterned
Venetian beads and brass cartridge cases, would be worn by a Dinka
man at or shortly before his wedding to show his eligibility and
the wealth of his family in cattle. The beads themselves would
either have been traded across the savannah from West Africa or
brought inland from the East African coast.